Hollywood ophthalmologist Alan Mendelsohn is one of Charlie Crist's closest political allies, a leader on the governor's transition team who helped raise Crist and other Republicans huge amounts of cash for their campaigns during the past decade. Mendelsohn may be the most politically influential physician in Florida. He has served as treasurer and chief fundraiser of the Florida Medical Association, held leadership roles with the Browar
In the lead story on this morning's local section, the Sun-Sentinel took off its little white glove and slapped Mutual Benefits' mastermind in the face with it.
The newspaper reports that the Ponzi scheme called Mutual Benefits poured $1.4 million into political coffers to help keep state regulators from knocking down its doors. Reporter Scott Wyman did some good decent digging and, in a true kettle meets pot moment, quotes former legislator Skip Campbell getting all indigna
With his fraudulent viatical company Mutual Benefits coming under fire from state regulators, convicted felon Joel Steinger decided he needed to buy the influence of the state legislature. To do that he first purchased the people who had their ears -- the lobbyists.
McKinley: A Man For Sale We know that Steinger's right-hand man in his quest to buy influence was Russ Klenet, husband of then-state rep and current Broward County mayor Stacy Ritter. Also hired by Mutual Benefits w
On what's unofficially the last week of summer, here's what's in the news:Florida's U.S. senator designate, George LeMieux, did not fall for an effort by Alan Mendelsohn, the Hollywood ophthalmologist and Charlie Crist fundraiser, to lure the administration into admitting complicity in the Mutual Benefits fraud, according to investigators in that case. [Miami Herald] The Seminoles and Charlie Crist's office are expected to announce a deal that would allow the tribe to play blackjack in exchan
It's Monday. Here's the news from the weekend in Broward and Palm Beach.
Big win for the Dolphins, who desperately needed a boost of confidence after an 0-3 start and Pennington's season-ending injury. Vontae Davis returned an interception for a touchdown, setting the tone for the defense's best effort of the year. Productive day for Ronnie Brown and for Pennington's replacement, Chad Henne. [NFL.com]The hits keep coming for Broward Sheriff's Office, which has discovered another crooked deput
Time to get your Monday on. But first, a look back on what made news this past weekend.Tamarac mayoral candidate Ed Portner gave a short interview to WPLG about why he went over to his daughter Stacy Ritter's home with a gun last week: "I wanted to scare the crap out of her." Mission accomplished. [WPLG]Tapes from the FBI investigation of Alan Mendelsohn show him trying to lure $400 grand from accused Ponzi schemer Joel Steinger, in exchange for getting the state to ditch a criminal investiga
Flickr: CenFlaPoliticsRubioIt would have been a more fortuitous sign for Marco Rubio if Doug Hoffman hadn't lost his congressional race in upstate New York, but the fact that a Conservative Party candidate won 45 percent of the vote has Rubio more hopeful than ever. The same can be said for the right wing of the Republican Party, which is now treating Florida Senate seat as its biggest priority.The Wall Street Journal is so eager to cover that it treated the New York campaign as a mere underc
